Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (C) speaks during his weekly cabinet meeting, inside the tunnel of the Western Wall (Al-Buraq Wall) of the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem, on May 21, 2023. Photo/Kobi Gideon (GPO)/Anadolu Agency
TEL AVIV – Prime Minister (PM) Benjamin Netanyahu announced that Israel must block the path to the establishment of an independent Palestinian state.
“We are preparing for the period after Abu Mazen (Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas). We need the Palestinian Authority. We must not let it collapse, and we don’t want it to collapse,” Netanyahu was quoted as saying in a closed-door meeting with the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Security Committee .
“We are ready to help economically,” he said.
Referring to Palestinian hopes of establishing a sovereign state, Netanyahu reiterated their ambitions “must be eliminated”.
The prime minister’s remarks came in response to questions raised by members of the Israeli Knesset about Tel Aviv’s relationship with the Palestinian Authority.
His remarks also come as the Israeli government approves the expansion of illegal settlements in the West Bank.
Since entering office in January, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition has approved the promotion of more than 7,000 new Jewish settler housing units, as far away as the West Bank.
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2023-06-27 12:45:52
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